Time Capsules

June 20, 2013

75 Years Ago:

June 23, 1938

Present Funds Will Pave 82

“Whether additional funds are secured from the federal government or not, Highway 82, one of the main roads of the state priority system, will be completed,” said the Hon. Abe Linker in a happy speech to local Rotarians Tuesday.

The road chief for the Northern district admonished his hearers to be patient in their expectations from the highway department, pointing out that many important phases of highway construction are not known by laymen, and that soils, manner of construction, degree of compactness together with many more conditions, affected the time of letting actual paving contracts.

One of the most interesting features of Mr. Linker’s address was his explanation of the battle between concrete and asphalt (or blacktop).

“Hundreds of thousands of dollars have been saved,” declared the highway commissioner, “because of the fact that the highway department had given no monopoly to any certain type of paving.”

Mr. Linker was frank in saying that immediate consideration of paving of Highway 9 was not probable. The department, he said, had figured that more people would be served in Calhoun, one of the forgotten counties, with a paved road connection with No. 51 at Grenada and with No. 15 at Houston. He pointed out that people in Pittsboro, Bruce, Serepta and other communities of North Calhoun would hardly be reached even if No. 9 were selected, because a straight-line road could not be constructed to serve all of these points, and such a road would lose in effectiveness to all because of the obvious curve necessary to touch them.

Mr. Linker detailed interestingly many of the problems which have faced and are now facing the highway department, and said that with the contemplated financial aid from P.W.A. funds, many additional miles of paving are probable over and above the original priority or federal aid systems.

Elephant Beetle

Captured in the A.L. Eudy home recently was a giant beetle that had bored through the wallpaper of a room. He was heard at his work for several nights, at last emerged to view. Young James Cochran, State College bugologist, declared the specimen a female elephant beetle. The male of the species has a curved horn protruding directly from the middle of his armored head.

50 Years Ago:

June 20, 1963

1st Blooms Swamp Progress Office

First cotton blooms were everywhere Friday as at least six reported on the same day at the Webster Progress.

First to bring the first bloom to the office and gets the free one-year subscription to the paper was E.W. South of Maben. Close on his heels were Andy Hill of Slate Springs, Harold Dorroh of Bellefontaine, H.M. Pepper of Peppertown, E.G. Wright of Eupora and Lloyd L. Jones of Mathiston.

Mr. South brought the first bloom into the office and was ahead of Andy Hill only by one hour. Last year’s first bloom was brought in on June 18 by H.C. Rodgers of the Shady Grove community. Peppertown News:

The Howell Pepper family attended a reunion at Grenada Lake recently.

Mrs. Leonard Pepper and Joy visited her grandmother Vaughan at the county home Sunday afternoon.

Mr. and Mrs. Deward Chrismond and Debra visited in the Kara Pepper home Sunday.

Visitors in the Wade Pepper home Sunday were Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Pepper.

The Troy Jenkins family of Houston, Texas, is visiting relatives in Peppertown.

Mrs. James Watson and children and Mrs. L.A. Byrd visited Sunday in the J.B. Pepper home.

25 Years Ago:

June 22, 1988

Farmer Elected to Federation Board

Jackie Earnest, a Webster County cotton and soybean farmer, was elected to the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation state board of directors at the federation’s 66th annual meeting.

Earnest will represent Chickasaw, Clay, Monroe and Webster counties. Currently serving as president of the Webster County Farm Bureau, Earnest has been active in that farm organization for the past 15 years.

New Hope News:

Mr. and Mrs. T.E. Griffin went to Tennessee and brought back their granddaughter to spend this week with them.

Mr. and Mrs. Marvin E. Doss and Joy of Charleston and Mr. and Mrs. William McCluskey of Starkville were Saturday visitors with Mrs. Mary Doss.

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